Gunchester United’s famous loss to Southend United 20 years on

Darren Fletcher, Alan Smith and Gabriel Heinze were among the stars to play alongside Ronaldo and Rooney in what was a £58.75m line-up.

“We saw the teamsheet and you do fear the worst,” admits Steve Tilson, who was Southend manager on the night.

Goalkeeper Darryl Flahavan recalls first learning of the Red Devils’ starting 11 over the stadium’s loudspeaker.

“I always remember my goalkeeping coach at the time, Lee Turner, coming up to me and just whispering in my ear, ‘I think you’re going to be busy tonight, mate’,” he says.

Yet despite the odds stacked in their favour, Jon Champion, who commentated on the game, recalls Sir Alex’s men looking uncomfortable at the old-school Roots Hall.

“I remember looking at some of them – who’d clearly never seen anything quite like this before in their fuckball careers – and they did look like fish out of water,” he says.